v1.0.0 to v1.0.0

---

name: cli-anything

allowed-tools: Bash Read Write Edit Glob Grep WebFetch

metadata:

tags: cli-anything, cli-hub, agent-native, computer-use, cli-generation, harness, click, repl, json-output, hkuds, plugin

platforms: Claude, Codex, OpenCode, OpenClaw, Pi, Hermes, Copilot, All

keyword: cli-anything

installer: pip install cli-anything-hub

source: akillness/jeo-skills

---

# cli-anything — Make Any Software Agent-Native

[CLI-Anything](https://github.com/HKUDS/CLI-Anything) (HKUDS) bridges AI

agents and the world's software: instead of brittle GUI automation, it wraps

real applications (Blender, GIMP, LibreOffice, OBS, Godot, QGIS, …) in

structured, agent-first CLIs — Click commands, stateful REPL, `--json`

output, undo/redo — generated and validated through a 7-phase pipeline with

2,461 passing tests across 40+ harnesses. This skill is the routing-first

wrapper: pick the right mode, install the right surface, and drive the

build → refine → validate loop.

## When to use this skill

- The user wants an agent to control real software (image/video/audio

editing, office, 3D, GIS, game engines, diagramming, streaming) through a

CLI instead of screenshots or RPA

- The user asks to install `cli-anything-hub` / use `cli-hub`

(`list`, `search`, `info`, `install`, `update`, `uninstall`, `launch`)

- The user wants agents to **autonomously discover and install** CLIs via

the CLI-Hub meta-skill

- The user wants to **generate a new CLI harness** from a local codebase or

GitHub repo with `/cli-anything`, or asked how to install the

CLI-Anything plugin/skill for Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, OpenClaw, Pi,

Hermes, Qodercli, or GitHub Copilot CLI

- The user wants to expand or verify an existing harness with

`/cli-anything:refine`, `/cli-anything:test`, or `/cli-anything:validate`

## When not to use this skill

- The user wants to **design a domain-specific agent team** (agents +

skills scaffolding), not a software CLI wrapper → use `harness`

- The user is browsing/installing **Claude plugins generally** → use

`ccpi-marketplace`

- The target has **no codebase and no API** and must be driven through a

real browser/GUI session → use `browser-harness` (or `playwriter` for an

already-open browser)

- The user only needs **web scraping/extraction** → use `scrapling`

## Prerequisites

| Requirement | Notes |

|-------------|-------|

| Python 3.10+ | CLI-Hub and generated harnesses are Python/Click based |

| Target software | Harnesses call the real backend — install the upstream app (GIMP, Blender, …) too |

| A frontier coding agent | Harness *generation* needs strong models (Claude Opus/Sonnet class); weaker models degrade quality |

| Source code access | The 7-phase generator works from source; binary-only targets degrade substantially |

## Instructions

### Step 1 — Choose the mode

| Mode | When | Entry point |

|------|------|-------------|

| **Use the ecosystem** | A ready-made harness likely exists | `pip install cli-anything-hub` → `cli-hub search <kw>` |

| **Empower agents** | Agents should pick/install CLIs themselves | `npx skills add HKUDS/CLI-Anything --skill cli-hub-meta-skill -g -y` |

| **Generate a harness** | Registry doesn't cover the software | Platform plugin/skill → `/cli-anything <path-or-repo>` |

| **Iterate a harness** | Coverage gaps, failing flows | `/cli-anything:refine` · `:test` · `:validate` |

Prefer the registry first — building is the fallback, not the default.

### Step 2 — Use the ecosystem via CLI-Hub

```bash

pip install cli-anything-hub

cli-hub list # browse the registry

cli-hub search image # search by keyword

cli-hub info gimp # inspect one CLI

cli-hub install gimp # install from CLI-Hub

cli-hub launch gimp # run an installed CLI

cli-hub update gimp # update

cli-hub uninstall gimp # remove

```

CLI-Hub v0.2.0+ also serves **public CLIs** from multiple install sources

(`pip`, `npm`, `brew`, bundled/system tools) via `public_registry.json`.

If a harness wraps desktop software (GIMP, Blender, LibreOffice, …),

install that upstream application too.

### Step 3 — Give agents the meta-skill

```bash

npx skills add HKUDS/CLI-Anything --skill cli-hub-meta-skill -g -y

```

Then prompt the agent:

```text

Find appropriate CLI software in CLI-Hub and complete the task: ...

```

Works with Claude Code, Codex, OpenClaw, Nanobot, Antigravity, and other

SKILL-compatible agents. The monorepo's per-harness skills are also

discoverable: `npx skills add HKUDS/CLI-Anything --list`.

### Step 4 — Generate a new harness (7-phase pipeline)

Claude Code (primary platform):

```bash

/plugin marketplace add HKUDS/CLI-Anything

/plugin install cli-anything

/cli-anything ./gimp # local source

/cli-anything https://github.com/blender/blender # GitHub repo

```

The pipeline runs: **1 Analyze → 2 Design → 3 Implement (Click CLI + REPL +

JSON + undo/redo) → 4 Plan tests → 5 Write tests → 6 Document (+ Phase 6.5

SKILL.md generation) → 7 Publish** (`setup.py`, PATH install).

Other platforms (Codex, OpenCode, OpenClaw, Pi, Hermes, Qodercli, Copilot

CLI, Goose) follow the same methodology — install commands are in

[`references/commands.md`](references/commands.md).

If `/cli-anything` is unrecognized: `/reload-plugins`, verify with

`/help cli-anything`, reinstall from the marketplace, and only on older

builds try the legacy `/cli-anything:cli-anything` form.

### Step 5 — Refine, test, validate

```bash

/cli-anything:refine ./gimp # broad gap analysis

/cli-anything:refine ./gimp "batch processing and filters" # focused

/cli-anything:test ./gimp # run tests, update TEST.md

/cli-anything:validate ./gimp # check against HARNESS.md

```

Refinement is incremental and non-destructive — run it repeatedly to push

coverage toward production quality. `HARNESS.md` is the methodology SOP

(source of truth) the validator checks against.

### Step 6 — Use a generated CLI

```bash

cd <software>/agent-harness && pip install -e .

cli-anything-gimp --help # discoverable via --help/which

cli-anything-gimp --json layer add -n "BG" # structured output for agents

cli-anything-gimp # bare command → stateful REPL

```

Every harness ships dual modes (REPL + subcommands), `--json` on every

command, and a generated `SKILL.md` at `skills/cli-anything-<name>/SKILL.md`.

### Step 7 — Plugin-style installation alongside jeo-skills

This skill folder is plugin-installable through the standard jeo-skills

flow so the wrapper, references, and installer script land on disk for any

supported agent runtime:

```bash

# Project install (writes into .agents/skills/cli-anything/)

npx skills add https://github.com/akillness/jeo-skills --skill cli-anything

# Global install for every detected agent

npx skills add -g https://github.com/akillness/jeo-skills --skill cli-anything

# Target specific agents

npx skills add -g https://github.com/akillness/jeo-skills --skill cli-anything -a claude-code -a codex -y

```

The skill also ships [`scripts/install.sh`](scripts/install.sh) — a

one-shot CLI-Hub installer (venv-aware uv/pip selection, PEP 668-safe) with

an optional meta-skill install via `CLI_ANYTHING_META_SKILL=1`.

## Output format

When the user asks `cli-anything` for help, return a compact brief:

```markdown

# cli-anything Routing Brief

## Scope

- Mode: use-ecosystem | empower-agents | generate-harness | iterate-harness

- Target software: <name or repo> | undecided

- Agent platform: claude | codex | opencode | openclaw | pi | hermes | copilot | other

## Recommended next move

- install-cli-hub | cli-hub-search | install-meta-skill | install-platform-plugin | run-/cli-anything | refine | test | validate

## Why

- 2-3 bullets grounded in the user's packet

## Route-outs

- `harness` for agent-team architecture (not software wrappers)

- `browser-harness` for no-codebase GUI/browser targets

- `ccpi-marketplace` for general Claude plugin browsing

```

## Best practices

1. **Search the registry before generating** — 40+ harnesses already

exist; `cli-hub search` costs seconds, a 7-phase build costs a session.

2. **Install the real backend** — harnesses call actual software with zero

compromise dependencies; tests fail (not skip) when backends are missing.

3. **Use `--json` for agent consumption** — every command supports it;

human-readable tables are for debugging only.

4. **Verify outputs, not exit codes** — the methodology checks magic bytes,

ZIP/OOXML structure, pixel/audio analysis; do the same with artifacts.

5. **Run `/cli-anything:refine` iteratively** — a single generation pass

rarely covers all capabilities; each refine run is incremental.

6. **Windows needs `bash`** — install Git for Windows (`bash` + `cygpath`)

or use WSL before running plugin commands.

## References

- Upstream repo: <https://github.com/HKUDS/CLI-Anything>

- CLI-Hub (web): <https://hkuds.github.io/CLI-Anything/>

- Methodology SOP: [`cli-anything-plugin/HARNESS.md`](https://github.com/HKUDS/CLI-Anything/blob/main/cli-anything-plugin/HARNESS.md)

- Quickstart: [`cli-anything-plugin/QUICKSTART.md`](https://github.com/HKUDS/CLI-Anything/blob/main/cli-anything-plugin/QUICKSTART.md)

- Publishing guide: [`cli-anything-plugin/PUBLISHING.md`](https://github.com/HKUDS/CLI-Anything/blob/main/cli-anything-plugin/PUBLISHING.md)

- Technical report: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.03854>

- Installer script: [`scripts/install.sh`](scripts/install.sh)

- Command + platform reference: [`references/commands.md`](references/commands.md)

- Adjacent skills: `../harness/SKILL.md`, `../ccpi-marketplace/SKILL.md`,

`../browser-harness/SKILL.md`, `../scrapling/SKILL.md`

- License: Apache-2.0 (see upstream `LICENSE`)